"She's crashed on top of the fallen tree! She's hurt!"
Hollypaw about Cinderpaw in Eclipse page 76
Below contains in-depth information for chapter five of Eclipse. If you are looking for a shorter summary of the entire book, please check the main article.
Chapter Number: 5 (of 25)
Page Numbers: 62-81

Chapter Summary

Jaypaw's PoV

Jaypaw walks out of the den while Leafpool and Cloudtail are sharing a mouse and goes to the fresh-kill pile. He notes that hunting patrols had already stocked up the pile before it was sunhigh. As he grabs a shrew out of the pile, he remembers the image of Cinderpelt starving in the old camp. He wonders if Leafpool is thinking of her old mentor while she's eating with Cloudtail.
Graystripe runs across the clearing and tells Jaypaw to hurry up, saying he was going on a hunting patrol. Jaypaw is excited at the thought of hunting, but Graystripe tells him that he, Sorreltail, and Mousewhisker would be hunting while Jaypaw looked for some herbs. Jaypaw doesn't feel very hungry anymore and he puts the shrew back into the pile, telling Graystripe he'll eat after they get back.
Graystripe announces that they're going down to the lake, and Jaypaw is now excited, thinking about the stick and what mysteries it may hold. He agrees to go, saying it would be good to get out and stretch his legs. Graystripe turns to the patrol and joins them, and Jaypaw follows the senior warrior. Sorreltail and Mousewhisker are mentioned to be impatiently pacing. When the patrol is together, they run out into the forest. Mousewhisker says many things to Jaypaw with excitement, such as wanting to catch a squirrel.
Jaypaw notices it is a hot day. Mousewhisker runs off, and Graystripe follows him. Sorreltail mentions that she wishes it could be greenleaf all the time, brushing her pelt against Jaypaw's to guide him. Jaypaw agrees, but draws away from her, not needing to be guided through this part of the forest. He runs a bit faster, and Sorreltail calls to him to slow down. They catch up with Mousewhisker and Graystripe on the rise, where the forest ends and opened up to the grassland leading to the lake. Mousewhisker is panting, out of breath, and Graystripe informs them that the young warrior almost had his squirrel, but that it scooted up a tree before he caught it. Mousewhisker blames it on a blackbird's alarm call, and Graystripe tries comforting him, saying he'll get the next one.
Sorreltail says she can't wait until she can go hunting with Honeypaw, Poppypaw, and Cinderpaw. She mentions that they'll be having their assessment soon, but Jaypaw begins wondering if Cinderpaw is actually ready, doubting that his mentor, Leafpool, was correct about her leg having fully healed.
Mousewhisker adds that it would be great to have them in the warriors' den, saying that it might stop all the old warriors from hogging the best nests and stealing all the softest moss. Sorretail and Graystripe tease him, and Sorretail teases that Thornclaw and Dustpelt would be pleased to hear that. Mousewhisker asks in alarm if she would tell them, and Sorretail calls that she wouldn't, and after Millie's kits were born, Graystripe would feel even younger as she darts down the slope. Jaypaw hurries after her, and after they reach the shore, Graystripe asks if it's a good place for herbs. Jaypaw nods, saying that he can get mallow by the water. Sorretail says that Mousewhisker could help him, who protests about his squirrel until Graystripe cuts him off, saying that his prey could wait. Mousewhisker reluctantly agrees, but then brightens as he says that if they're near water, he might catch a fish. Jaypaw doubts it, and privately thinks that unless he had a RiverClan mentor, he wouldn't catch anything from the water.
As they head towards the water, Mousewhisker comments that the lake is smooth as a laurel leaf, and then asks Jaypaw what mallow looks like, forgetting that he's blind. Jaypaw shrugs, and replies that he didn't see any. Mousewhisker squeaks in dismay that he's sorry, but Jaypaw brushes him off, knowing it was a slip. Jaypaw sniffs the air, and a sweet smell fills his nose as he points to the water's edge, saying that's mallow. Mousewhisker seems impressed, but Jaypaw doesn't reply. He asks the young warrior if he could gather as much mallow as he can, saying that there was something further up the shore that he wanted to check, and Mousewhisker hurries down to the water, and Jaypaw veers away.
He pads to the treeline, and sniffs around the gnarled bark until he finds the stick. He takes it out and relief floods his paw as they feel the smoothness of exposed wood, confirming that it was the right stick. Jaypaw wonders about the truth about the stick, and knows the stick was linked mysteriously to the Ancients. He didn't know which Clan or Tribe had used these tunnels to test apprentices to become warriors. Jaypaw wonders if this meant that all the Clans and Tribes were somehow linked together.
Mousewhisker splashes towards him, reeking of mallow as he approached Jaypaw, who shoved the stick where it was. Mousewhisker asks him what he was doing, and Jaypaw quickly replies that he was checking something. Mousewhisker spits the leaves onto the ground and asks if he was checking a stick. Jaypaw lies that it wasn't important, just medicine cat stuff that he would never understand. He braces for a flurry of questions, but to his surprise, Mousewhisker simply begins to scrape the leaves into a pile and replies that he was glad to be a warrior, his mew muffled as he gathered the leaves back into a pile.
Graystripe calls from the bank if Mousewhisker caught his fish, and Mousewhisker, spraying Jaypaw with leaves, replies that he didn't, but he caught some mallow. Jaypaw, stifling a frustrated hiss, collects the dropped leaves and follows the young warrior onto the bank. His belly rumbles as he smells the mice the patrol caught. Sorreltail, sensing Jaypaw's hunger, mews that they should get back to camp. She darts up the grassy hillside, and back towards the forest. As they begin to head home, Jaypaw halts, scenting a ThunderClan patrol heading towards them. A moment later, Jaypaw hears Thornclaw and his apprentice, Poppypaw, crash through the undergrowth, Brightheart and Birchfall close behind. They burst out of the bushes onto the ridge, and Brightheart bursts out that WindClan crossed the border. Graystripe drops his mouse and asks them if they were in their territory. Thornclaw growls that they weren't, but the scents were fresh, and they've been hunting their territory again. Graystripe asks if they remarked the borders, and Birchfall replies that they did. Graystripe, scraping the ground with his claws, saying that they needed to report this to Firestar.
As the two patrols enter the camp, Cloudtail asks sleepily where Brightheart was going. His mate promises that she will be right back as she scrambles up the Highledge after Thornclaw. Mousewhisker drops his pile of mallow leaves and asks Jaypaw if he could tell Hazeltail and Berrynose what happened, and Jaypaw lets him hurry away and tell his littermates. Jaypaw drops his own mouthful of leaves and begins to bundle them together, ready to take them to the medicine cat den. Hollypaw pads towards him and asks if she could help, and Jaypaw, sick of the taste of mallow, agrees. Hollypaw asks what the fuss was about, and Jaypaw says that WindClan crossed the border. The black she-cat's pelt bristles, thinking that they wouldn't after they saved the kits from the tunnels, and Jaypaw braces himself from a speech about how true warriors respected borders, but it surprises to find something else on her mind.
Hollypaw says that Cinderpaw told her that her assessment was tomorrow, and Jaypaw asks if she complained about her leg hurting. Hollypaw asks what the matter was, and notes that she thought that Cinderpaw was better. Jaypaw nods, saying that Leafpool said she was. Hollypaw sighs, commenting that she wished she could watch her assessment. An idea sparks in Jaypaw's mind, and he asks her why they couldn't, to check that she was alright. His littermate gasps, saying that it wasn't allowed. Jaypaw retorts if it was part of the warrior code. Lionpaw pads up behind Hollypaw, asking what the two were talking about. Hollypaw explains that they were going to watch Cinderpaw's assessment tomorrow, and Lionpaw echoes his sister, wondering if it was allowed. Jaypaw doubts it, but he says that he wasn't planning to announce it to the whole Clan. Lionpaw agrees to watch, and Hollypaw mews that if anyone caught them, they could say that they were trying to get some tips before their assessment.
Jaypaw wakes up to the sound of birds chittering in the trees. He starts to leave the den, but Leafpool inquires where he is going. Jaypaw lies and says he left some leaves behind yesterday, and assures Leafpool that he can find them by himself. He pads out of the den, and out through the thorn tunnel. Brightheart is guarding the entrance and stops Jaypaw, asking where he was going so early in the morning. He hastily replies that he is fetching herbs for Leafpool, and that he is fine by himself. Jaypaw smells the scent of the dirtplace, and Hollypaw and Lionpaw crawl out from beneath a bush. They explain that they couldn't think of a different reason to leave camp.
Lionpaw and Hollypaw both roll in mushrooms to hide their scent, at Jaypaw's recommendation. Lionpaw comments that poor Cinderpaw will think she's being stalked by toadstools. Jaypaw scents Thornclaw, Sandstorm, and Cloudtail, so he whispers to his littermates to keep quiet. The mentors reassure their apprentices, saying that they are not competing against each other, only themselves. Sandstorm tells them they are not to help each other, then lets them start their assessment. Jaypaw, Hollypaw, and Lionpaw freeze as Poppypaw passed by the bush they were crouching under, but she doesn't notice them.
They follow Cinderpaw as she catches a scent, and heads down a slope. Jaypaw recognizes the scent Cinderpaw is after: a squirrel. Lionpaw almost runs into Cinderpaw, but manages to dart out of the way. Hollypaw says that she's following the squirrel, and Lionpaw tells Jaypaw that the squirrel is fleeing, but hasn't started to climb yet. Hollypaw exclaims that she made such a great leap, but abruptly stops.
Jaypaw asks what's the matter, and Hollypaw shrieks that she mistimed the jump and crashed on top of the fallen tree. Jaypaw clawed his way up the trunk of the tree, and pressed his muzzle to her injured leg. Cloudtail asks if she's hurt, and Cinderpaw croaks that it just buckled as she jumped. Jaypaw says that she needs to get back to camp, and he sends Hollypaw up ahead to warn Leafpool. Cloudtail instructs Lionpaw to make sure her injured leg doesn't touch anything while he carries her to camp.
The group enters camp with Cinderpaw limping on three paws, but supported on both sides. Cinderpaw is angry that her leg gave way, because she doesn't want Honeypaw and Poppypaw to go to the warriors' den without her. Leafpool soothes that she knows she's upset, and tries to make her more comfortable. She tells Cloudtail that the muscles are wrenched, and they will heal with rest. Cinderpaw asks Leafpool repeatedly why her leg gave way, and if she'll ever be able to become a warrior. Leafpool says to Cinderpaw that she'll be fine, and gives her a poultice.
She then turns to Jaypaw, surprised, and says she had thought he'd left with the others. He tells her he'd never leave when they had a patient, and also mews that Leafpool shouldn't have told Cloudtail that she was ready for her final assessment. Jaypaw reminds Leafpool that even though she wants Cinderpaw to be a warrior as soon as possible, she also doesn't want her to suffer the same fate as Cinderpelt. Leafpool demands to know what's wrong with that, and says that not being able to be a warrior broke Cinderpelt's heart. Jaypaw tells Leafpool that she's obsessed with the past. He says that she just wants everything to turn out the way she wants it to. Leafpool says she just wants to do what's right, and Jaypaw replies that she can't always do the right thing, even if she want to. He senses grief flood from Leafpool as she says she know that, but she'll always try to do what's right.





References and Citations

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 Revealed in Eclipse, page 62
  2. Revealed in Eclipse, page 69
  3. Revealed in Eclipse, page 70
  4. 4.0 4.1 Revealed in Eclipse, page 63
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 Revealed in Eclipse, page 68
  6. 6.0 6.1 Revealed in Eclipse, page 73
  7. Revealed in Eclipse, page 67
  8. Revealed in Eclipse, page 72
  9. Revealed in Eclipse, page 77
  10. 10.0 10.1 Revealed in Eclipse, page 64

Eclipse chapters
Warriors cliffnotes
The New Prophecy MidnightMoonriseDawnStarlightTwilightSunset
Power of Three The SightDark RiverOutcastEclipseLong ShadowsSunrise
The Broken Code Lost StarsThe Silent ThawVeil of ShadowsDarkness Within
Graystripe's Adventure The Lost WarriorWarrior's RefugeWarrior's Return
Stand-alone Manga The Rise of Scourge
Tigerstar and Sasha Into the WoodsEscape from the ForestReturn to the Clans
Ravenpaw's Path Shattered PeaceA Clan in NeedThe Heart of a Warrior
SkyClan and the Stranger The RescueBeyond the CodeAfter the Flood